[imagesource: @AdrianEphraim / Twitter]

The Hout Bay community has rallied around efforts to find Anothando Mhlobo, a three-year-old who went missing from Imizamo Yethu on Monday.

The search intensified last night following WhatsApp messages from members of the Imizamo Yethu community, saying there had been reports that a man was seen with Mhlobo.

Mhlobo was last seen wearing a navy blue, red and white jacket, paired with a red and navy blue tracksuit pants, as well as red and blue Spider-Man gumboots.

Claims of kidnapping remain unverified, but the Pink Ladies did put out this poster on social media:

Hout Bay-based Kim Worrall, the CEO of non-profit Amoyo, spoke with CapeTalk’s Refilwe Moloto about the latest developments:

She says over the next 20 minutes several messages came through indicating the direction in which the man was moving was towards the soccer field in Hout Bay.

Worrall’s husband is a paramedic and so they took medical kits and blankets to the search area..

“What ensued was a chase. I personally did not see anything, but people claim to have seen him running. It was pitch dark by this time.”

The community of Hout Bay rallied in droves late on Wednesday night.

“Literally thousands of people came out and searched for many hours.”

The man was reported to be wearing a K-Way jacket, and later a jacket matching the description given was found in the search area.

Here’s the full interview with Worrall:

Whilst residents of Hout Bay should be applauded for their assistance, one member of the Community Policing Forum told News24 that he had spoken to local police, and there was still little verified information:

“So there’s no verified information about [a kidnapping].”

This reportedly didn’t discourage members of the community who walked along canals, under bridges and through wooded areas to find the missing child. Cars lined the streets in Hout Bay and the rain didn’t deter residents from searching.

Some footage from the search efforts last night:

Hundreds of #HoutBay residents came out to search for missing 3-year-old boy #Anothando Mhlobo tonight. Residents were on the trail of the suspect, searching in bushes, on the banks of the river and in drain pipes. The search continues. 🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/sxN8m1GRv9

— Adrian Ephraim (@AdrianEphraim) August 12, 2020

Earlier today, Worrall shared this on the Hout Bay Organised Facebook page:

She also spoke with The South African about the search efforts:

“We’re asking everybody to search every area of Hout Bay. We’ve got one drone up in the air and more drones arriving now which are going to do different areas of Hout Bay,” she said.

“Horses are out along all the river banks and green belts and they’re going up into the dunes. We have kayaks hitting the different points, the police are activating every single resource, the sniffer dogs are back so we’re just about to get them to smell other shoes and possessions that belong to Anothando,” she added.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Sergeant Smith on 083 522 1075, or the Hout Bay police station on 021 791 8660.

Sergeant Njara can also be contacted on 082 302 8370.

[sources:capetalk&news24&southafrican]